Review: YOU ME AT SIX “VI”

You Me At Six are one of the best rock bands to come out of the U.K in our generation, and they’re back with their hard hitting album ‘VI’, out on October 5th via Cooking Vinyl Australia. ‘VI’ is You Me At Six’s sixth studio album and come shot off the heels of their extremely successful 2017 release ‘Night People’ which peaked at number 3 on the U.K Billboard chart.

Formed in 2004 in Weybridge, Surrey, You Me At Six currently consists of lead vocalist Josh Francesci, rhythm guitarist Max Helyer, lead guitarist Chris Miller, bass guitarist and backing vocalist Matt Barnes and drummer Dan Flint.

We start off with Fast Forward, and the sound is big right from the off. You’re essentially tricked into a false sense of security as it opens with quiet tones but that doesn’t last for very long. The instruments and Francesci’s vocals come in with a bang and demand attention. “Pour some gasoline on” repeats throughout the chorus and forgive the pun, but the You Me At Six boys are on fire!

Straight To My Head is next and the guitar is chugging straight from the off with a little bit of industrial noise mixed in. Francesci shows off his impressive vocal range and ability in the big chorus and you’re going to want to scream along with him and jump up and down. The bigness of the chorus carries through the entire track and if It doesn’t getting you moving in your car seat, on your couch, or at the arena when it’s playing live, you’re not listening to it right.

Track three is Back Again and it’s a track that’s going to make you want to dance, and rock out all at the same time. Barnes shows off his talent on bass throughout this track and it’s really the only instrument that consistent from the start to the end of this track. It’s a little bit different from what You Me At Six fans are normally used to but it’s also a really great, feel good, dance rock track. The dance vibes are carried over onto Miracle In The Mourning, which is track four. There’s a great cohesiveness to this track and the instrumentals and the vocals are like a match made in heaven. Lyrically it is a little repetitive but that’s the only ‘bad’ thing about the track.

3AM and I O U come next and there’s a little bit of Never Gonna Give You Up about the opening instrumental of 3AM but the similarities between this track and the Rick Astley classic ends there. It’s a great midway track for this record and was a great choice to release the track as a single to give the fans a little bit of a taste of what to expect from the record. I O U starts off with a bassline that is attention grabbing throughout the track and doesn’t get lost when the guitars and drums kick in. It’s much more a rock song than the previous tracks on the record but still keeps those party vibes in the background whilst bringing the instrumental to the forefront. There’s a real funky guitar part that pops up at a few points in the track that ties everything else together.

Pray For Me and Predictable are next to grave our ears and the vibe is changed up yet again. Pray For Me is a lot slower than the tracks that precede it and it’s really stripped back. Francesci really gets to shine here and his vocals are the highlight of the track. You can really hear and feel the raw emotion in his voice throughout. Predictable has one of those ‘hey, look at me’ basslines again, but the drums are also attention seeking. Flint’s drums and cohesive and consistent throughout and he does some beautiful fills. It’s another really big sounding track and hopefully it finds it’s way onto the setlist at live shows.

Next up is Danger it gets in your ear right from the start and in fact required a second listen because I got so lost in it the first time. It’s got a really catchy bass and drum line than will leave a lasting impression on you long after the track is finished. The lyrics are also catchy as hell and you’re going to be singing along to this while you blast it loud from your car stereo. The final track on the album is Losing You and it’s the most different track on the record in terms of the sound but it’s a great note to end on and is a great way to end a fantastic record.

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